More business grads go for green

David F. Pyke, dean of the School of Business Administration at the University of San Diego, says increasing numbers of students, professors and businesses have embraced environmentalism and found “win-wins” that result in profits and a smaller carbon footprint.

David Brooks

David F. Pyke, dean of the School of Business Administration at the University of San Diego, says increasing numbers of students, professors and businesses have embraced environmentalism and found “win-wins” that result in profits and a smaller carbon footprint.

David F. Pyke, dean of the School of Business Administration at the University of San Diego, says increasing numbers of students, professors and businesses have embraced environmentalism and found “win-wins” that result in profits and a smaller carbon footprint. (David Brooks)

DAVID F. PYKE

Personal: Born Nov. 6, 1954, in Morristown, N.J. Married 26 years to Susan Pyke. Three children in college: James, 24; Danny, 22; Cory, 19. Lives in Del Mar.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in sociology at Haverford College, 1976; MBA in management analysis at Drexel University, 1982; and master’s degree and doctorate in decision sciences at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, 1987.

Career: After teaching math for seven years, joined the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College in 1987. Became associate dean of the MBA program and professor of operations administration. Joined USD in August 2008.

Outside interests: Hiking, reading (most recent book, “All the Shah’s Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror” by Stephen Kinzer), music, movies, and Lwala Community Alliance, a development and education charity for a community in Kenya.

As college students head toward graduation in a few weeks, many are searching for companies with an environmental ethic, according to David F. Pyke, dean of the School of Business Administration at the University of San Diego. Improving job prospects will allow many to pursue their passion to “make a difference,” Pyke said.

And companies are welcoming their talents as never before.

Pyke, 55, heads a school with 1,152 undergraduates, 444 graduate students and 75 full-time faculty. Last year, the Aspen Institute ranked the school 21st on its list of the top 100 business schools for integrating social, environmental and ethical issues. Three years ago, USD was ranked 36th.

When Pyke began teaching at Dartmouth College, he said ecology-minded business students represented a small minority, and could be identified by their long hair and Birkenstocks. Even a dozen years ago, they were outnumbered by those who dreamed of big salaries on Wall Street.

But today, Pyke said, increasing numbers of students, professors and businesses have embraced environmentalism and found “win-wins” that result in profits and a smaller carbon footprint.

Pyke, whose great-grandfather was a missionary in China and whose parents were held in a Japanese internment camp in China, said emerging economies have not yet recognized the benefits of going green. He studies issues surrounding supply chains for U.S. companies that have manufacturing operations in China and other developing countries.

“There is this debate about a developing economy,” Pyke said. “Can it afford the luxury of improving the environment? They look at us and say, ‘Yeah, who are you to tell us that? We’re not going to feed our people and provide health care?’ They have a point. And then you hear recently the stories of them taking baby steps in terms of certain things in terms of sustainability. I have not looked at that closely. I don’t know if it’s smoke and mirrors, or whether it’s real.”

As Earth Day 2010 approaches, Pyke reviewed the intersection of economics and the environment as it relates to his students, local businesses and the greater world beyond.

QUESTION: How do you see the battle between business and environmentalism over time?

ANSWER: There are companies who 10 years ago tried to put on a green label in hopes that they would sell more products at a higher price. (He cited an example of T-shirts made of organic cotton that cost 50 percent more and sold well until hard times arrived.)

QUESTION: And now?

ANSWER: Companies are making a significant commitment. Of course, they want the grand marketing benefits from that, but there’s been an ongoing effort in terms of their research to find a win-win. It’s been exciting.

QUESTION: Are they finding that it pays to go green?

ANSWER: There are trends that are less a win-win situation. This is where real leadership comes in. Somebody at the CEO level says we’re going for it because it’s the right thing to do. We think there’s money on the table, but we’re going to do that. Now, that’s a challenge because you have shareholders you have to answer to.

QUESTION: Is this a generational shift? These CEOs rose the corporate ladder in the age of growing environmental awareness.

ANSWER: There’s pressure from the outside. People are asking, ‘What are you doing for the environment?’ Plus they’re hiring students — we see huge numbers of students completely different from 15 years ago coming to business school saying, ‘I want to make a difference when I leave here,’ plus they want to make money. Now they’re going to choose what company are they going to go to. I’ve seen more and more students, smart students, well-trained, who could choose either one, who are making choices to go to companies that have a broader sense of mission.

QUESTION: That makes sense in a boom, but it doesn’t make sense in a recession when companies are shedding jobs, students have no choices and they’re lucky to get a job. So in the last couple of years, what have you noticed?

ANSWER: I have seen no decrease in the numbers of students with a passion around wanting to make a difference. They have to face reality, and if the choice is to be a waitress or get a job with a company that may or may not be my first choice, there you go.

QUESTION: So as they near graduation, what are their prospects?

ANSWER: Some of them are going to be snapped up immediately. Accounting firms are hiring like crazy. There are more jobs than there are students in supply chains. This is good news for students coming out. The challenge is if I were graduating this year, I would wish I could slow the clock down six months. (He speaks of predictions that the economic recovery will occur gradually.) As that turn happens, I would like there to be more of a ripple effect into the economy.

QUESTION: Turning to your interest in China, do Chinese students have a great interest in sustainable development and environmental protection?

ANSWER: I don’t think so. I may be wrong about that. I base my answer on family history and conversations with old Chinese hands. (He compares the neat, ordered neighborhoods in Japan to the unplanned chaos in many Chinese communities.) It’s the Confucian philosophy. The Chinese are very pragmatic, so tidying it up, making it look pretty, is not high on the list. Take that to the environmental side — providing for my family, getting ahead, being entrepreneurial and business-oriented — and the environment might figure a little lower on the ladder.

QUESTION: So the Chinese don’t see the bottom-line damage to this approach?

ANSWER: When I teach sustainable supply chains, my wrap-up message in the last session is No. 1, identify and sell win-win solutions. I can convince a manager that he or she is going to save money and do good for the environment. No. 2, being a little more ambitious, let’s get some smart people, business students, focused on the problems that don’t have an obvious solution.

QUESTION: How are American companies coping with sustainable supply chains when it comes to China with its low wage rates?

ANSWER: Wage rates (for engineering and top management positions in China) are almost equal to the U.S. Companies are making decisions to come back West. That might be to Costa Rica, but if they’re staying in China, it might not be for cost reasons but the market. You’re seeing companies re-look at their carbon footprint. They’re re-evaluating, and some companies are making the decision to come back.

QUESTION: Finally, back to the job prospects for your students, how does the San Diego economy look?

ANSWER: Health delivery is huge here, and pharma-biocom. In business school, our students aren’t going to go out and do science. They’re not going to be the doctors. But every single one of these organizations needs finance, accounting, marketing, strategy, operations. We’re pretty good at training those people. So we’re building our ties to some of those organizations to open doors for our students.